WORK on a long-awaited Somerset housing development will begin in a matter of months after detailed plans for the first homes were approved.
Taylor Wimpey Exeter intends to build 635 homes over a four-year period on the Crewkerne Key Site, which lies between the A30 Yeovil Road and the A356 Station Road to the east of the town centre.
Plans for the first 110 homes were submitted by the developer after the revised layout for the spine road connecting the development to the two main roads was signed off in May 2020.
South Somerset District Council has now given the go-ahead to this first phase of house-building, with the developer promising that construction will begin as soon as humanly possible.
The first phase will see 110 homes built at the southern end of the site, with a new signal-controlled junction being created to allow vehicles to access both the town centre and Crewkerne railway station.
This phase will also open up land for both employment units and a 60-bed care homes, both of which were secured within the outline planning permission.
A new primary school is also included within the outline permission, at the northern end of the key site – but this may not come to fruition after contentious school reforms by Somerset County Council are implemented.
Just under 19 hectares of agricultural land adjoining the site will be taken out of commission to mitigate phosphate levels from the new homes, in line with the recent Dutch N court ruling regarding the Somerset Levels and Moors.
Several local residents expressed their displeasure at the plans at a virtual meeting of the council’s area west committee on Wednesday evening (March 17).
Puck Webber, who lives opposite the proposed new junction on Station Road, questioned whether the new spine road would create more traffic than it would end up alleviating.
He said: “As far as I can see, the only link it links is Taylor Wimpey’s housing with the two main roads – it doesn’t provide any traffic alleviation for the town centre whatsoever.
“Traffic will still have to access Crewkerne town centre to reach the A30 and Chard.”
David Singleton said the spine road should be rerouted around the nearby industrial building to ensure residents of the new homes and the care home were not subject to excessive noise.
He said: “It is plainly obvious from the most recent plans that no consideration has been mitigate the impact of residential development in this area.
“The manufacturing industry does not stop at 5pm or at weekends. It is plainly obvious that such industry, residential properties and a care home in such close proximity is a recipe for disaster.”
Sophie Larter and other residents had staged a protest against the “obscene” removal of lime trees near the Station Road in early-March, hanging ‘Stop the Chop’ banners in the remaining branches.
Speaking on Wednesday (March 17), she said: “Our local countryside and green spaces have been a lifeline during lockdown. Why are you allowing the loss of further greenbelt land?
“Replanting trees is simply not enough. This is green-washing, and not a plan to tackle the climate emergency.”
Colin Danks, representing the developer, said Taylor Wimpey would accept additional conditions from the council to control noise, and said they would not remove any more trees than were necessary during construction.
He added: “We would like to get on-site this year. We’ve waited ten years in viability with this site.
“That road costs a lot of money to deliver – Taylor Wimpey, I suspect if you asked them, would rather not deliver it, but it’s important to Crewkerne and has been for many years.”
Councillor Mike Best (who represents the Crewkerne ward) said that refusing these plans would see more housing be brought forward at less ideal sites.
He said: “Because of the lack of progress on the key site, we’ve had other sites like the one at the top of Kithill and Godwell Farm.
“We’ve had other sites like the 350 homes opposite the station, and they will continue to come in unless we can deliver this.
“It’s not ideal, but now is the time to move forward.”
Councillor Ben Hodgson (who represents the same ward) added: “This has been a long and tortuous process getting to this point.
“I share the speakers’ concerns about the potential of noise interference, but I am minded to approve.”
The committee voted unanimously to approve the plans after less than an hour’s debate.
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